The physical vulnerability of coastal areas due to rising sea level and the flooding risk consequent, does not guarantee the implementation of protective behaviors by these risk zones’ inhabitants. This study aims to establish the link between the willingness to carry out protective behaviors and physical and perceived indicators of vulnerability. A typology of coastal flooding vulnerability, uses various physical indicators and their perceived counterparts which have been collected from 490 inhabitants of Cartagena (Colombia, declared world heritage of humanity by UNESCO in 1984), resident in areas of coastal flooding risks. The item-response theory (IRT) approach has been used. The results reveal that the implementation of protective behaviors is more related to perceived indicators, such as distance to the sea, than to actual physical vulnerability. We observe that physical vulnerability is linked to the intention to carry out protective behaviors. The presence of a defensive structure against coastal flooding could be considered as a visual cue and be a good predictor of the willingness to carry out protective behaviors. On the contrary, people in the most vulnerable situation (single-storey house) do not demonstrate a higher level of willingness to carry out protective behavior, as well of participants who lived in residential buildings which have demonstrated lower level of willingness to carry out such behaviors. Therefore, vulnerability of the house is not seen as a criterion that encourages participants to better protect themselves.