Qaitbay Castle is one of the most important heritage sites in Alexandria which has recently witnessed many negative practices. Therefore, this study evaluates the level of cultural awareness of residents in Qaitbay Castle area. It also investigates their gains from tourism advantages, as well as their participation in heritage preservation which helps achieving sustainable tourism development. The study was conducted through two methods: (1) interviews with managers in some tourism and heritage official institutions regarding their efforts to raise cultural awareness among local community; (2) A questionnaire to collect data from a random sample of 570 residents in the area of Qaitbay Castle. Four hundreds and eighty one questionnaires were valid to be analyzed. The results revealed the weakness of residents' cultural awareness and the lack of integrated program between the official authorities to enhance cultural awareness. Finally, some suggestions for enhancing community's awareness were proposed for managers and policy makers.