The monodisperse spherical $SiO_2$ particles were overcoated with $Y_2O_3:Eu^{3+}$ phosphor layers via a Pechini sol-gel process and the resulting $SiO_2@Y_2O_3:Eu^{3+}$ core-shell phosphors were subsequently annealed at $800^{circ}C$ at an ambient atmosphere. The crystallographic structure, morphology, and luminescent property of core-shell structured $SiO_2@Y_2O_3:Eu^{3+}$ phosphors were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and photoluminescence (PL). The spherical, nonagglomerated $SiO_2$ particles prepared by a Stober method exhibited a relatively narrow size distribution in the range of 260-300 nm. The thickness of phosphor shell layer in the core-shell particles can be facilely controlled by varying the coating number of $Y_2O_3:Eu^{3+}$ phosphors. The core-shell structured $SiO_2@Y_2O_3:Eu^{3+}$ phosphors showed a strong red emission, which was dominated by the $^5D_0-^7F_2$ transition (610 nm) of $Eu^{3+}$ ion under the ultraviolet excitation (263 nm). The PL emission properties of $SiO_2@Y_2O_3:Eu^{3+}$ phosphors were also compared with pure $Y_2O_3:Eu^{3+}$ nanophosphors.