Few studies have examined tourist emotional experience as a subjective emotional journey, using both embodiment and psychological perspectives which view emotion as a function of interactions between human bodies, personality, events, and environment. This longitudinal panel study examines Chinese outbound tourists’ emotional experience throughout a leisure trip (from pre-, during- to post-trip) and explores the underlying emotion generative and regulatory process. Mixed research methods are utilized through the three trip stages: pre-trip interviews and a survey on anticipated experience and personality traits; three techniques tracking tourists’ during-the-trip experience and emotion regulations - a wristband measuring real-time emotional arousal, two researchers joining the tour as observers; and daily interviews; post-trip interviews and a survey on participants’ emotion generative and regulatory process. Preliminary results reveal a dynamic emotional experience and regulation process which is determined by personal and situational factors, thus promising academic and practical contributions.