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THEBACHA/FORT SMITH - After travelling the world for a year the James family has returned to their home in Fort Smith.

Parents Rick and Claudette, their daughter Alex and their son Luke each picked the top five countries they wanted to visit in order to come up with an itinerary.

Claudette James, shown here, stopped in London, England, during the world-wide trip she took with her husband and kids. - photo courtesy of the James family

The very busy trip encompassed a total of 21 countries visited in close to 10 months and an additional two months were spent travelling across Canada.

"Our children were the right age. Alex was 12 and Luke was 10," said Claudette.

"We wanted to expose them to the big world out there and that they can do anything."

One year gave the family a lifetime of memories, as James listed the many highlights from their travels. The Galapagos Islands, the Great Wall of China, the pyramids in Egypt, India's Taj Mahal, the Great Barrier Reef and the Serengeti in Africa were just some of the spectacular sites.

"They all have something special about them," said Claudette of the various nations the family visited.

The James family did occasionally get a little homesick when they were far away from Fort Smith.

"It happens in spurts," said Claudette. "I think after that you just kind of settle into a routine."

She said the longest the family stayed in one place was nine days at Kovlam, a beach in southern India.

Asked which country was the James' favourite, she said Australia stood out for all four family members.

"We liked the people and felt at home," she said.

Daughter Alex is already planning to return to Australia in the future.

"I've got a plan. I'm going back to Australia (in) my gap year. I've already got a friend recruited," said Alex.

She said she was able to keep in touch with friends occasionally at Internet cafes and admits she is looking forward to getting back to school. Alex said she has many amazing memories from the trip, like spending Christmas in Shanghai and visiting India, a country she picked because of the Taj Mahal.

"We kept making friends (while travelling) so that helped," said Alex, who said she is now hooked on seeing new parts of the world. "I wrote on my facebook wall 'travelling is like a bug. Once you're bitten there's no cure.'"

Claudette said the family is happy to be home, although it feels somewhat "surreal" to be back.

"Doing the year and travelling across Canada just renewed that we live in the best place in Canada," she said. "Overall it's just a great appreciation for where we live and the freedoms that we have."