Lying beside the sea, it is a popular local tourist destination via car from Petone or from ferry crossings from central Wellington.

A narrow exposed coastal road connects it with the rest of Lower Hutt via the Eastern Bays and the industrial suburb of Seaview.

With a locally administered possum-eradication programme, much of the native bush has regenerated, including red-flowering northern rātā trees.

[5] The suburb's origins lie in pre-colonial times, with local Māori Iwi having several Kāinga and Pā in the area for hundreds of years, in the bays and the raised headlands respectively.

[6] European settlement increased after the devastating 1855 Wairarapa earthquake, because the Waiwhetu river in Seaview was lowered, along with the raising of the shore of Wellington Harbour by 2 metres.

[6] Prior to its amalgamation into Lower Hutt, the Borough of Eastbourne comprised a separate town, with its own council and civic administration.

The Eastbourne Community Board[7], a remnant of the former town council, remains vocal on local issues.

Residents took in survivors, Eastbourne's two hair-dressing salons emptied their establishments of towels and the local bakery delivered sandwiches, soup and trays piled with buns, scones, muffins, pies and cakes to the RSA.

Eastbourne's culture involves its laid-back, sunny atmosphere, small restaurants, heritage homes and remoteness that invokes a curiosity among other Wellingtonians, who have flocked there for summer day trips since the 19th century.

The hills surrounding Eastbourne provide an important habitat for indigenous biodiversity and contain some of New Zealand's rarest and most-endangered plant species.

[16] The banded dotterel (tūturiwhatu) is a nationally vulnerable bird that nests in the Eastbourne foreshore (Robinson Bay), Baring Head, and Parangarahu Lakes.

Predator Free NZ has said that the banded dotterel is more endangered than the whio and great spotted kiwi.

In 2020, volunteers monitoring the site noted that a lone cat had eaten eggs and killed chicks, decimating seven nests in one season.