[1] Carrara is bounded to the east by the southern bank of the Nerang River and to the west mostly by the Pacific Motorway.

[citation needed] The name Carrara comes from the Aboriginal word Karara meaning long flat.

[12] In 1958, Keith Williams established the Surfers Paradise Ski Gardens on the south bank of the Nerang River in Carrara.

It quickly became a popular tourist attraction featuring shows of water skiing and speed boat driving.

[9] St Michael's College opened its Carrara campus on 4 February 1985, but, as at 2021, this school is within the boundaries of neighbouring Merrimac.

[9][3] In 1987, Japanese Daikyo Group worked on the $50 million Palm Meadows 18-hole golf course and country club.

[19] Josiah College opened in April 2018 to provide specialist education for children with autism spectrum disorders.

The other top responses for country of birth were New Zealand 9.5%, England 5.1%, South Africa 1.3%, Japan 0.9%, Scotland 0.8%.

85% of people spoke only English at home; the next most common languages were 1.3% Japanese, 0.8% Mandarin, 0.6% German, 0.5% French, 0.5% Italian.

[26] Josiah College is a private special primary and secondary (2-12) school for boys and girls on the autism spectrum.

[citation needed] The Carrara Stadium hosted the 2018 Commonwealth Games opening and closing ceremonies, as well as a variety of musical related tours and events.

The indoor stadium previously hosted the now defunct Gold Coast Rollers, where they competed in the National Basketball League.

Carrara is also home to the soccer team Magic United, as well as the Palm Meadows and Emerald Lakes golf courses.