The bay is roughly square in plan opening to the North Sea along its northeastern side.

It is overlooked by Bamburgh Castle Golf Club at this point and by the Northumberland Coast Path and St Oswald's Way which share a common route in this vicinity.

It is underlain by limestone and other rock types of the Alston Formation though these are not exposed except along parts of its southeastern shore.

The quartz-microgabbro of the Whin Sill occupies the higher ground on this southeastern side of the bay.

[2] A seaport existed in Budle Bay up to the early twentieth century variously called Waren, Warenmouth and Warenquay.