Painting floor tiles

[Esther]

In our hallway we have a very light coloured, ceramic tiled floor. Some of the tiles have been damaged so one suggestion given to us is to fill the cracks and paint over the tiles with the colour we want. Is this a good idea? Will the paint be long lasting or will it soon look worn and messy?

Also, if we decide to re-tile, is it advisable to just tile over the old, damaged tiles or pull up the old tiles and start again?

Thanks!