Boasting numerous surf beaches and swimming spots, the suburb attracts both tourists and Greater Sydney residents.

Cronulla is 26 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the Sutherland Shire.

Cronulla is derived from the Aboriginal word Kurranulla, meaning "place of the small pink seashell" in the dialect of the area's Indigenous inhabitants, the Gweagal, who were a clan of the Tharawal (or Dharawal) tribe.

Holt built Sutherland House on the foreshore of Gwawley Bay in 1818, on the eastern side of Sylvania.

The Depression of 1890 and a lack of reliable transport access from Sutherland saw "The Captain's" pub sold.

On 26 February 1908, it was officially changed to Cronulla and Gunnamatta was used for the name of the bay, on the western side.

The Cecil Hotel was located on the foreshore of South Cronulla and the Ritz Café was popular with holiday-makers.

The steam trams were replaced by the Cronulla branch of the Illawarra railway line when it opened in 1939.

The beaches are popular recreational areas for swimming, surfing, bodyboarding, bodysurfing and other water sports.

Cronulla has many restaurants, nightclubs, pubs and bars, as well as a brand-new Hoyts cinema that opened late-2020.

U-Go Mobility operates several bus routes that stop at Cronulla Railway Station.