The south facing beach looks directly out to Storm Bay and the Tasman Sea, with views of the Derwent estuary, the Alum Cliffs, Taroona Shot Tower, the City of Clarence on the eastern shore and Opossum Bay, South Arm.

Prior to the British colonisation of Tasmania, the land had been occupied for possibly as long as 35,000 years[4] by the semi-nomadic Mouheneener people, a sub-group of the Nuennone, or "South-East tribe".

[7][8] In 2021, Hinsby Beach was utilised for MONA FOMA celebrations with an installation called Hobart Digs, in which south sea pearls encased in handcrafted boxes by German artist Michael Sailstorfer were buried in the sand and discovered by participants.

Hinsby Beach performs well for water quality within the Derwent estuary for swimming.

[10][11] Hinsby Beach is accessible from the Hobart City Centre via the Channel Highway.