Eu3+-doped Gd2O3 inverse opal photonic crystals were successfully synthesized based on a self-assembly technique and a sol−gel method. The inverse opal Gd2O3:Eu3+ material exhibited a pronounced photonic stop band in the visible region. The effect of the stop band on the spontaneous emission of Eu3+ has been studied. Significant suppression of the emission was observed when the Eu3+ ions’ emission bands overlapped with the photonic stop band, whereas enhancement of the emission intensity was detected when the emission bands appeared at the long wavelength edge of the band gap.