The return of the Soyuz capsule carrying space tourist Richard Garriott and cosmonauts Oleg Kononeko and Sergei Volkov happened without any incidents, with a safe landing in Kazakhstan at 10:37pm CDT (03:37 GMT).

A spokesman for the Moscow mission control stated that everything went according to plan and that everyone is well.

“I don’t recall such a perfect landing as this one,” Anatoly Perminov, head of Russia’s space agency Roskosmos, said in Moscow. “We did everything that was possible and more, and the landing was just ideal. The crew feels fine.” Even though there were no apparent problems, the crew was sent to an inflated medical tent for a standard checkup and then talked to the press for a few moments.

The two cosmonauts returned after 199 days spent in orbit, while Mr. Garriott completed his 10-day pleasure cruise which required a pay of over $30 million. He managed to accomplish the dream of following his father’s footsteps, Owen Garriot, who completed a 60 day mission back in 1973 aboard the Skylab.

"What a great ride that was," said Garriott in a statement reported by The Associated Press, adding that "This is obviously a pinnacle experience."

Kononeko and Volkov ended their Expedition 17 on the International Space Station, which will now be handled by Expedition 18’s crew composed of Michael Fincke, Greg Chamitoff and Yury Lonchakov. With this mission successfully completed, NASA will now focus on its upcoming projects which will surely include many more space tourists, as the thought of such a trips appeals to many.