Due to their conspicuous foraging activities, they are commonly known as processionary or marching termites.

They often inhabit cavities inside of living trees excavated by other species of termite.

As with other genera in the subfamily, soldiers have a nasal tube from which, in case of danger, they shoot terpene-based repellents.

They are one of the few species and genera of termites (Hospitalitermes, along with Lacessititermes and Longipeditermes) that forage in large columns in the open air.

In the species Hospitalitermes hospitalis, the width of the columns is 20–30 mm (up to 8 termites in a row), they move away from the nest by an average of 29 m (up to 65 m), visiting neighboring trees and collecting lichens, mosses, fungi and other microepiphytes.