Perhaps the most famous person to live in Windy Arbour was Irish patriot Robert Emmet, who grew up in The Casino, a manor house now known as Emmet House, where the Secretariat of Secondary schools in Ireland is currently housed. It is located next to the Catholic Church on Bird Avenue and was formerly known as Carton House. It is reputed to contain a secret passage leading from the house to the boundary wall, which Emmett used as a boy.

Windy Arbour is a small suburban village in the Dundrum area of Dublin. Situated between Dundrum and Milltown, along the banks of the Slang River (also Dundrum or Slann River), Windy Arbour has amenities including a supermarket (which includes a post office), two pubs, Ryan's Arbour House and The Corner House (formerly called Kyne's Corner House, J.D.'s Corner House, The Millrace and The Nine Arches), as well as a primary school known as Our Lady's National School, Clonskeagh. It also has a Luas station.

Windy Arbour is surrounded by several housing estates including Columbanus - which consists of St Columbanus Road, Place and Avenue; and St Gall's Gardens(North and South; Mulvey Park; Olivemount Grove and Terrace; St Luke's Crescent; Churchfields; Highfield Park, Annaville Park, Annaville Residence and Frankfort Park. At the heart of Windy Arbour is the smaller and much older townland of Farranboley, which appears on maps dating from the 18th century.