Sarina Beach is a late twentieth century coastal settlement, 35 km south-east of Mackay and 8 km east of Sarina. It is situated on the northern headland of Sarina Inlet which was named by surveyor William Wilson in 1869.

Sarina Beach has ready access to a sandy ocean beach and to the protected waters of the inlet. A caravan park was closed and its land fronting Owen Jenkins Drive was redeveloped as an upmarket housing estate. It has a store, a motel, a surf life-saving club, and its hinterland includes wetlands and tree-covered slopes. Its census populations have been:

The next headland south of Sarina Beach is Freshwater Point, and beyond there is the coastal settlement of Armstrong Beach. It is nine km south-east of Sarina. Formally named in 1999, the settlement dates at least from the early 1960s when a population of 26 was recorded.

Armstrong Beach has a caravan park and several dwellings classified as 'other', indicating a history of vacation-shacks. Nearly 60% of employed residents are technicians, trade workers, machinery operators and labourers (2006), compared with 31.5% for Australia. The median weekly income per resident, however, is close to the median for Australia, just $8 below the national figure of $466. Armstrong Beach's census populations have been: