Where in North America is a good place for a nice quiet vacation?

If you want a quiet place that is beautiful and has lovely weather, consider Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA. It is only an hour drive from the Albuquerque airport (ABQ), and has a local airport (SAF) with direct flights from Los Angeles (LAX) and Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW).

There is much arts and culture in Santa Fe, and it is surrounded by green mountains, yet is semi-arid in town so you're unlikely to be rained out no matter when you go. August is the rainiest month, but even then it usually only rains for a couple of hours in the afternoon. It is at a very high altitude (7000 feet -- 2000 feet higher than Denver) so it is never too hot (it rarely goes above 33C (90F) even in the middle of the day and is always cool and pleasant during summer nights) and the winters are sunny with pleasant days, though it can get very cold (as low as -18C (0F) at night. There is also a wonderful ski hill a short distance from town.

There are art festivals and events pretty much all summer long, culminating in the annual Fiesta in September. And this year the city is celebrating its 400th anniversary since its founding by the Spanairds, so it is an even better time to visit.