You have been discounting them against a centerline aft? Or even a V?
Funny, I have always considered it the #1 choice.
I have a V and aft pullman aboard, definitely the aft pullman is the owners
cabin, it's great!
The only downside is yes, one has to climb over the other if they need to get up in the middle of the night or before the other wakes up. But there are many more pros to outweigh that negative.
1) Sometimes you can get a pullman as large as a queen and even with a real mattress (mines a double mattress with foam as a filler by the
hull with a queen topper).
2) It is against the
hull, so at least on Hooked, it allows a reclined day bed/couch like option that I like to use often. Mine is large enough that the PO says he would sleep athwartships (king wide bulkhead) underway on
passage on certain points of sail and fore and aft in other and that was especially good for
single or double handing for both seakindliness and quick
cockpit access.
3) Versus a V or aft centerline it is certainly the most
seaworthy offshore (many say pilot berths are the most, we have one on each side).
4) My observation is a pullman can offer better central
cabin space and layout for my taste.
You can see a Hooked's pullman here
https://m.sailboatlistings.com/view/54312
and there is a youtube link there that shows it better. I am also glad it is an aft pullman vs fwd pullman. It's quiet, a gentle rocking if it's blowing, I love the views from my aft hull porthole and again quick access to the
cockpit.