I don't remember costings etc so can't help you there, but as far as being a novice goes - The first time I skiied was on Bulla. Second time was on Hotham and we had a group lesson. Bulla, well I took to it like a natural. I used to roller skate/blade heaps when I was younger and I found that controlling the skis was much like controlling a pair of roller blades. The people I was with couldn't believe I'd never tried skiing before. I found it was much more ski-friendly for a newbie. But on Hotham, I found it much harder. They were steeper slopes and the instructor, whilst he had us in stitches laughing, had a habit of calling out instructions while he skiied away from us - and nobody could hear a word he said It was a disastrous but funny lesson (which also included my DH falling over often from simply being stationary).

We've never stayed on the mountains, but stayed in a cabin at both Mansfield and Bright. We hired our gear from our accommodation in Mansfield, but on the mountain at Hotham. If you don't want to drive up, there are shuttle buses that go up and down from the towns.