This paper presents a combined analytical and experimental study on the travelling-mode of a spinning cylindrical shell with elastic boundaries. The theoretical study shows how to analyze the spinning cylindrical shell with elastic boundaries based on Donnell's shell theory and express the displacement field of the above shell as the product of trigonometric functions and a modified Fourier series. The experimental study shows how to measure the natural frequencies and mode shapes of the spinning cylindrical shell. In addition, the experimental data of the stationary cylindrical shell helps to adjust the stiffness of the boundary springs in the theoretical model via a genetic algorithm. Based on the updated theoretical model and the experimental data, the paper illustrates the phenomenon of modal precession, with the effects of the centrifugal force and Coriolis force on the vibration characteristics of spinning cylindrical shell. The analysis focuses on the vibration of the spinning cylindrical shell in terms of the travelling-mode frequency and travelling-mode rotating speed. The results reveal that Coriolis force caused by radial motion has an influence on the circumferential vibration and that Coriolis force caused by the circumferential motion affects the radial vibration as well.