"South Bay" is a calque of the bay's Chinese name, written 南灣 in traditional characters or 南湾 in simplified characters.

The beach has white sand and a length of around 600 meters (2,000 ft).

[4] The area around the beach provides facilities such as changing rooms, toilets, rental and sale of swimming equipment, restaurants and parking.

Common activities at the beach and its surrounding areas are swimming, surfing, snorkeling, scuba diving etc.

The beach is accessible by bus from Xinzuoying and Kaohsiung Stations, run by the Taiwan Railways Administration.