cheap ski vacation

I live in Houston. I am planning to take a ski trip next year. How can I get the best deal for my trip? The bet I found so far is to stay in Atlantis in Reno,Nevada and go to one of the ski resorts nearby. My air ticket would be around $280 and hotel say would be $70/room with taxes and fees (see below). Do you think it is a good deal? Do you know any other cities closer to Houston with a better deal??

http://biddingfortravel.yuku.com/topic/96414/t/4-Reno-South-Atla...

If you are willing to stay in Reno and drive 45-60 minutes to ski areas, it's hard to beat the Reno/Tahoe area from an economic standpoint ( Utah is another option if you are willing to stay in Salt Lake City and drive to the ski areas. $70 at Atlantis is not that great a deal, assuming you are not just going for the w/e. I normally get weekday rooms at Harrahs Reno ( with a total rewards card) for about $30 and Circus-Circus for about $20 ( they normally have a special where they offer very cheap rates in Jan-Mar if you make your reservations during the week between Christmas and New Years - signup for their email list at their web site). Also see my post in this thread.

Salt Lake/Park City also offers a free lift ticket to a few near by resorts on the day your fly in. A $60-80 value depending on the mountain you want to go to.

http://www.parkcity.com/quickstart.cfm

Check out www.onthesnow.com for deals, they tend to have a farily decent selection at good prices. Find a deal you like then try and piece it together yourself and you will generally save a bit more.