Aim: To uncover the recreational and tourist potential of a unique building on the Mount Pip Ivan Chernogirsky in the Carpathian Mountains, a high-altitude astronomical and meteorological observatory, which is now being restored by the joint Ukrainian-Polish efforts, after 80 years of decline. Methodology: research of archival sources on the history of the construction, functioning, decay and restoration of the unique high-altitude observatory in the Carpathians in the modern conditions, which is now the largest object of Ukrainian-Polish cooperation in the humanitarian sphere. Results: Characteristics of the current state and the possibilities of using the unique high-altitude observatory "White Elephant" in the Carpathians as a factor of the tourism development in the region. Scientific novelty: For the first time a comprehensive study of the past, present and future of the former Polish astronomy and meteorological observatory "White Elephant" has been carried out for the first time in the Chernogora massif of the Ukrainian Carpathians, taking into account the celebrations devoted to the 80th anniversary of its construction, with the participation of the Polish Minister of Investment and Development, the rectors of Warsaw and Precarpathian Universities. Practical significance: the article reveals the peculiarities of the restoration of the White Elephant High-Altitude Observatory in the Carpathian Mountains by joint Ukrainian-Polish efforts and encourages potential investors in this project, including Ukrainian, Polish and European higher educational establishments, for which the observatory can be the base for student practices in geography, meteorology, astronomy, geology, biology, ornithology, etc.