Hi maal99!

I think you have a budget that can support a number of lodges/camps. Perhaps some at a 3 night stay vs a 4 night stay.

Some other lodges to consider would be Elephant Plains Lodge. Clients have had very good reviews. Also, there's Simbavati River Lodge. If you are keen to do more bush walking, Senalala has some excellent field guides for that.

Your challenge will be the single surcharge since you are traveling alone which increases the per night cost. There are lodges though that don't charge a single surcharge. So keep that in mind while you do a targeted search. It could impact your decision.

Just as an example, once you hit a certain point in the per night cost with the surcharge, you should then consider a better quality lodge. For example, Arathusa's 2017 per adult cost is R5600 per night but with the surcharge, you would pay R8400 as a single traveler. Kings Camp in the Timbavati does not charge a single surcharge and their rate for 2017 is R8000. So you may be able to stay at a higher end camp for same price basically. Certainly this is just for the purposes of pointing out that there's a cost to traveling as a single at many properties but not all. I realize that this be over your budget. Illustration purposes only.

Happy to help!
Dianne
Africa Direct USA