They are not exactly the same.
Hermetic Tarot is based on the Golden Dawn system of Tarot organization, which was the influence for future decks like the Rider Waite and the Thoth. There are other published decks that use this system, such as Golden Dawn Regardie-Wang and Golden Dawn Temple.
The Thoth deck is a unique system developed by Aleister Crowley that tailored the Golden Dawn system to his personal tastes. It incorporates elements of his religion Thelema that are not present in Golden Dawn decks or Rider Waite.
In terms of learning, that depends on the learner. Most North Americans begin learning with Rider Waite rather than Thoth, so there is less literature published about learning Thoth than Waite. However there is some great literature about the Thoth deck that would be of help to a total beginner. This includes a couple books written in more casual language that expand on Crowley's own text for the deck, The Book of Thoth.
Books exclusively about the Golden Dawn system are more rare, and although there are documents around the web about it, they are mostly brief and dry without much detail that a total beginner might find difficult. But the same can be said for the Book of Thoth itself, which can also be very dry and difficult.
Some would say that by choosing either system you are starting in the "deep end" of Tarot. But you will learn a ton from it, not just about the deck itself but about astrology, Qabalah, alchemy, and many other systems that go into it. If you already know a bit about some of these, learning one of the Tarot systems will be easier.