Awe, as a positive emotional experience, is recognized for its role in facilitating tourists' pro-environmental behavior (TPEB). However, despite its significance, awe has received minimal attention in tourism-related research. This research introduces an expanded model of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) that integrates awe into the rational-oriented TPB framework to examine its impact on TPEB. We collected data at the Mount Huangshan scenic spot in China and employed structural equation modeling for data analysis. Findings suggest that the extended TPB model, which incorporates the emotion of awe, outperforms the original TPB model in predicting TPEB. Awe experienced in nature-based destinations is mainly influenced by the perception of the natural environment (PNE) and significantly predicts TPEB. Study findings offer an integrated framework combining emotional and rational perspectives to understand the factors driving TPEB in nature-based tourism. Furthermore, the study aims to establish connections between the psychological experience of awe and the philosophical perspective of the sublime. Importantly, our findings provide compelling evidence supporting the role of nature-based tourism as an effective model to facilitate tourists' environmental attitudes, emotions, and behaviors. Finally, the implications for practice are discussed.