Is the “designer” earning a commission on all of those cabinet sales? Hmmmm? Maybe hire an independent kitchen designer, who you pay for good advice. And who isn’t financially motivated to give such bad advice.

If the room is large enough & the windows/doors are to scale, cabinets to the ceiling can be spectacular. But it's not for everyone & if you don't like it, it's a waste of money.

You would need a ladder to reach the top cabinets in an 11 foot ceiling.

Same as Pennfire.

I agree that storage will be difficult to access. However, I'd rather have empty cabinets than having to dust and clean the tops of them. Either way, you'll need a ladder, might as well have some extra storage.

This is the ladder that I have:

Leifheit 5 step ladder

I have this one. It fits in a pull-out with my broom and dust pan.

https://www.frontgate.com/ultralight-slimline-3-step-stool/pet-home-care/home-solutions/600612?listIndex=1&uniqueId=600612