The Lantaka Hotel has been considered one of the iconic symbols of Zamboanga City. It evokes memories of both relaxation and tension – a testament and witness to the history of where it is located. It is a microcosm of what the people in Orgullo de Mindanao experienced. As it is now an important institution under the Society of Jesus, it is imperative that we look back on the provenance of the Lantaka Campus.

The word lantaka refers to bronze cannons used on native ships that traverse our regions. They are mounted on swivels and placed on the sides of these vessels.  Although its range is limited, it was bored by hands and “valued very highly by the Moros” during the prime of its time. 

Little is written about how the Lantaka Campus evolved but the site where it is currently located was a settlement for the Lutaos (native Zamboangueños) that is adjacent to the Spanish military fort of San Jose (later renamed Fort Pilar) as evidenced by old Spanish maps, particularly the famous Pedro Murillo Velarde map.

During the American occupation, its military needed a larger space to house its troops since Zamboanga was the capital of the Moro Province and its headquarters. A military reservation was established between Fort Pilar and what was once Pueblo Viejo  named Pettit Barracks. The campus was the site of once what was called “Lantaka Flats” which served as the exclusive clubhouse for recreation and relaxation of US Army officers. 

Since it was located inside the Pettit Barracks, the Lantaka Flats has been occupied by the Japanese during the Second World War. During the operations where the Americans reclaimed Zamboanga, it was the only surviving building of the military camp.  After the war, it was bought by businessman Antonio Bayot and converted it into a partly air-conditioned first-class tourist rest house named Hotel Bayot by the Sea. It was renamed back to Lantaka Hotel by the Sea sometime after Mr Bayot sold it to the Walstrom family.  Records in the 1970s indicate that it had 94 rooms and 128 rooms by 1995.  Around 2000s, the property housed a new school called Nuevo Zamboanga College, Inc.

In 2019, the Lantaka Hotel property was donated to Ateneo de Zamboanga University by the Walstrom family and was declared to be used as a place for the university to do its mission in education, spirituality, faith, and social development. It was formally inaugurated on March 19 of the same year.  During the COVID-19 pandemic, the campus was used as an isolation facility for patients under investigation (PUIs) and persons under monitoring (PUMs).  After two years, it was finally returned to the university after COVID-19 cases began to drop. It formally reopened in a simple ceremony on October 10, 2022 and its buildings were renamed after the members of the Walstrom family on February 27, 2023. Serving as the third AdZU campus, the Lantaka Campus currently serves as a venue for the university’s retreat and recollection programs and houses a few offices of the University and are leasing spaces to tenants.