Corona del Mar's housing stock reflects a coastal village that has evolved over more than a century. The original 1904 subdivision used compact 30-by-120-foot lots, creating the intimate street pattern still visible today, especially on the flower-named streets near the village. The older area consists largely of closely spaced, detached single-family homes of varied architecture, including quaint mid-century bungalows alongside newer custom residences. Spanish Colonial influences are common, with white stucco walls, red-tile roofs, and courtyard designs. The neighborhood is known for its ocean-view and bluff-top properties, which command a premium and give the area its distinctive upscale coastal character.

Corona del Mar is made up of several distinct districts. The Village, along Pacific Coast Highway, is the walkable commercial and dining heart, with the compact flower-named streets of the original subdivision nearby. Irvine Terrace, just north of Avocado Avenue, is an established enclave with larger lots and harbor and ocean views. Eastbluff, on the inland side, offers family-oriented streets and is home to Corona del Mar High School. Together these areas range from bluff-top estates and custom ocean-view homes to more traditional single-family neighborhoods, all within the broader Newport Beach community and minutes from the harbor, the beach, and Crystal Cove.

Corona del Mar offers a classic Southern California beach lifestyle. The village core along Pacific Coast Highway is compact and walkable, lined with restaurants, coffee shops, and boutiques that give the neighborhood a small-town resort feel. Residents enjoy beach access, ocean views, and a temperate coastal climate that supports an outdoors-oriented daily rhythm of swimming, surfing, walking, and cycling. The neighborhood's proximity to Newport Harbor adds boating and waterfront dining to the mix, while Laguna Beach and its art scene sit just minutes to the south. The overall character is affluent, active, and relaxed, with a strong sense of coastal place.

Corona del Mar is served by the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, the public district covering Newport Beach and Costa Mesa. The neighborhood's anchor campus is Corona del Mar Middle and High School, a combined 7th–12th grade school located in the Eastbluff area of Newport Beach. The school is well regarded, with a strong Advanced Placement program and a long-standing place in the community. Nearby, additional Newport-Mesa elementary and middle schools serve younger students. The district's presence, together with the area's proximity to private schools and higher-education institutions across Orange County, reinforces Corona del Mar's reputation as a family-friendly coastal community.

Corona del Mar is oriented around Pacific Coast Highway, also known as State Route 1, which runs through the village and connects the neighborhood northward toward Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, and the broader Orange County freeway network, and southward to Laguna Beach. John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana is a short drive to the northeast, providing regional and national air service. Newport Harbor lies immediately to the west, and the neighborhood's location between the coast and the San Joaquin Hills places Irvine and its employment centers within an easy commute. Most travel is by car, though the village itself is highly walkable.

Corona del Mar's recreation centers on its coastline. Corona del Mar State Beach offers a sandy cove for swimming and sunbathing, framed by cliffs and tide pools. Just south, Crystal Cove State Park provides an expansive natural area with beaches, tide pools, and miles of hiking and biking trails across coastal bluffs and canyons, plus opportunities for wildlife watching. Newport Harbor, to the north and west, supports boating, sailing, and waterfront recreation. The village's walkable streets and coastal trails encourage an active, outdoors-oriented lifestyle, with the arts, dining, and beaches of Laguna Beach only a short drive away.