Please help break my paralysis by analysis!

My family of 4 (kids 16, 12) plan to go on a 4-day safari in Sept/Oct. Our budget is $2,000 total per night. Our top 5 priorities are 1) Big cat (lion, leopard, cheetah) encounters; 2) Non-zoo, non-crowded experience; 3) Guide/safari knowledge; 4) True Wilderness (no towns as a backdrop); 5) Lodging quality, which includes chances to see wildlife at camp.

I've spent weeks researching & contacting different lodges. After endless sifting & weighing factors like availability & C-19 cancellation policies, these are, in no particular order, my finalists:

1. Sabi Sands - Ulusaba Rock Lodge
2. Madikwe - Molori Safari Lodge
3. Madikwe - Impodimo Game Lodge
4. Madikwe - Tuningi Safari
5. Kwandwe - Kwandwe Ecca Lodge
6. Phinda - &Beyond Phinda Mountain Lodge
7. Timbavati - RockFig
8. Timbavati - Bateleur Safari Camp
9. Sabi Sands - Silvan Safari

I only listed the lodges in case you have experience with them or their transversing rights are a factor. Otherwise, I suspect it mostly comes down to the quality of game viewing between the reserves.

Based solely on our priorities above, what would you choose?

Many Thanks!

I've been to three of the reserves on your list (Sabi Sand, Madikwe and Phinda) but none of the lodges, so I can only make general comments.

Of course it's very subjective, and to some degree trying to rank these places is a bit like ranking diamonds, emeralds and sapphires - they're all fabulous. I would say from our experience - twice to Madikwe, three times in Sabi Sand and once at Phinda (Forest Lodge, not Mountain) that the game viewing at the Sabi Sand lodges was very marginally the best. But that statement comes with umpteen qualifications and reservations; it really was a case of superb, superber, and superbest, to coin some words.

One clear advantage of the Sabi Sand reserve is its fenceless border with the greater Kruger NP complex. Madikwe is huge but ultimately fenced, as is Phinda. One does encounter fences in the Sabi Sand reserve, but only in areas abutting non-reserve lands, such as near the entry gates. Now I don't think the fences inhibit biodiversity; I suspect their impact is far more psychological on the visitors than somehow altering the way wildlife behaves or moves about.

One other advantage of the Sabi Sand lodges is that they're close to areas of interest outside the reserve boundaries, in particular the Panorama Route - Blyde Canyon, God's Window, etc. - which means you can spend the night before your lodge stay begins in a marvelously scenic area, then scoot over the reserve boundary in time to settle in comfortably before the first evening game drive. Coming from farther away can make this difficult, and the game drives are what you're paying for (and how) so this might be a factor to consider.

Hopefully others will have specific input on the other reserves or the lodges under consideration. As for Madikwe I'm happy to recommend Buffalo Ridge, where we visited twice. One of the appeals of this property is that it's community owned, which was a plus for us. YMMV of course.