Tipping

Should cruise lines make tipping compulsory?

I feel that customer’s should be able to tip them selves if they want to not have to made to do this.

Us British are not tight we just like to tip people that give us really good service, its only on cruise lines that make this compulsory . Maybe the idea of tipping is down to the personal service you receive at that moment in time and want to reward the individual for making your experience at that time enjoyable. If you automatically tip there is no incentive for the staff to go that extra mile and this person gets rewarded regardless. Most customers in my experience prefer to tip when the staff do that little bit more so why make it compulsory?

MSC charge 7 Euros per night in the Mediterranean but in South Africa Cruises the charge is 6 US Dollars per night (£4)? Does this mean that the staff on the Mediterranean Cruise give better service than the South Africa Cruise?

I would like to hear your thoughts and experiences on this subject.