Hong is a very friendly and welcoming host. It rained a lot while we were there and she gave us ponchos to use. She also had great suggestions for restaurants and things to do around town. Her place is in an ideal location. It's very close to downtown Hilo and Akaka Falls. Volcanoes National Park is only an hour away.
The kitchen is equipped with a coffee maker, rice cooker, hot plate, mini-fridge, and electric kettle, so you can do some cooking if you like. The kitchen area is a bit small though, so it may be tough to do a lot of cooking if there are other guests.
There were a few things I wish I had known about the place. They use catchment water, so you will have to boil water for drinking and cooking. Hong did give us some bottled water, which I appreciated, but we did have to boil quite a bit because we did a lot of cooking.
The door that leads from the main hallway to the outside has a gap at both the top and the bottom. There is no screen over these gaps, so bugs can and do get inside to the main hallway and kitchen area. Fortunately, the door to the bedroom goes top to bottom, so no mosquitos in the bedroom as long as you always keep your door closed.
If you are fine with something very basic and don't mind a few mosquitos here and there, it's a good place to stay for the price.