It is on the peninsula's northern coast, on the southern shores of Lyttelton Harbour, and is administratively part of the city of Christchurch.

[6] Godley House was built in 1880 by Harvey Hawkins (a ship chandler, ironmonger and financial speculator) on land purchased from Mark Stoddart.

However, damage caused by the February 2011 earthquake left engineers recommending the Category II Historic Place be demolished.

[12] Diamond Harbour statistical area, which includes Charteris Bay and Purau, covers 3.02 km2 (1.17 sq mi).

Before the 2023 census, the statistical area had a larger boundary, covering 4.06 km2 (1.57 sq mi)[1] but not including Purau.

Orton Bradley Park is located very close to the township of Diamond Harbour.

As of 2021 it has a Four Square supermarket [15] in a new mini-mall which includes a fish and chip shop, a café bar, and a self-service fuel station.

[19] In combination with buses from Lyttelton to Christchurch, this allows residents of Diamond Harbour to commute to the city.

The British comedy podcast Three Bean Salad features an occasional recurring segment about Diamond Harbour.