We are thinking about going to AC for our honeymoon next July, and we would prefer cabana/casita accommodations on the beach.

The hotels/resorts I've been looking at are:
Ramon's Village
Portofino
Mata Chica
Journey's End
Capricorn
Capt Morgan's

How would you rate these in terms of cleanliness, staff friendliness, and overall quality?

We're planning to stay only for about 6 nights, and we would also like to visit the mainland once or twice (Mayan ruins trip?). Otherwise, we're just looking for a place to relax and swim. Nearby shopping would also be nice. I don't know the geography of the island very well, but how far are these places from town? Close proximity to other restaurants is important (walk or golf cart, unforutunately, I never learned how to ride a bike). Finally, we're not big party people, but we do enjoy people-watching. :p I don't know how many of these places are party resorts, but we'd prefer something a little bit quieter to get some R&R.

Any other recommendations would also be appreciated.

Thanks!

Ramon's Village
Portofino
Mata Chica
Journey's End
Capricorn
Capt Morgan's

If shopping and restaurants are important to you then you can eliminate Mata Chica, Journey's End and Capt. Morgan's as they are all above the cut.

The only one close enough to everything you want is Ramon's.

Ramon's is the only place in town. All the other places are north of the cut (i.e. the channel that seperates San Pedro from north Ambergris Caye). Here are my web links for my two recent trips. We stayed at Ramon's both times.
http://www.unm.edu/~irmin/
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/iwehmeier/

If you are just into chillin' in the best place for you on a honeymoon and don't mind trippin' into town on a boat now and then (oh, yeah, and don't need a pool) then you will be very happy at Mata Chica.

If you'd like a really, really cool honeymoon place with a pool, a bit of solitude and ability to get town whenever . . .then you should look into Victoria House.

http://www.concierge.com/brides/articles/BRIDES1029521700292010/

http://www.victoria-house.com/

Ramon's and Captain Morgan's are more singles, party oriented. Mata Chica is a good choices. Met a couple from Portofino who raved about it, so that's an option too. The person above me suggested Victoria House, which is very nice too.

lots and lots of families stay at Ramons and Capt Morgans...

Of course there are a variety of types of vacationers at all hotels, including Ramon's and Captian Morgans; however, they tend to be more singles oriented. They market themselves that way. The Temptation Island program and subsequent advertising touting the hotels' sex appeal, reinforce that messaging. I am not saying that families and honeymooners don't go there, rather that the hotels cater more toward partying than they do romance.

I think the above is a matter of opinion. I send many more couples & families to Ramon's & Cap't Morgans than singles. Lots of honeymooners too. I think all these suggestions are good for honeymoons. Depends on what you are looking for, price range, etc. Feel free to email me for more info if you like.
www.barbsbelize.com

Good point about this being a matter of opinion, Barbara. I have visited most of the places mentioned on that list, and while most were diversely populated, I found Mata Chica and VH to be loaded with honeymooners. I also was not criticizing Ramon's or Captain Morgans. Those properties are very nice. Ramon's has a great bar that I had quite a bit of fun at. However, the properties have chosen to target a particular audience with their marketing, and from a cursory scan of the visitors, it appeared their campaigns were a success. In fact, a travel companion of mine, a single woman, elects to stay at Ramon's when visiting Ambergris because as she said, "I am not reminded of my single status like I am at other places."