Chatty, welcome to the forum. First of all you should think about the activities you would like to do. There after thing of your hotel. There many cheap and comfortable hotels in Ambergris Caye. The problem is the cost of most activities. Snorkel and diving are not as expensive as tour on the mainland. So if you would like save on tours on the mainland, it is best to book your mainland activities with a company that operate from Belize City. Some of the most popular tours are as follow: Cave Tubing, zip line and cave tubing, lamanai mayan ruins, and Cahal pech mayan ruins. Most of these tour are sold for almost twice their regular price in Ambergris Caye. Boarding the ferry at 7:00am to hook up with a tour company from mainland Belize City will save you a lot. If you really would like to save on tour book combinations. There some tour groups that offer some very interesting tours. There is a tour guide in Belize City known as "Action." He and his team are very popular. His email address is:
belizetoursandexcursions@gmail.com. You may want to ask him to assist you on setting up some cheap tours.