aero junkie,
Yep, I can see why you had a bit of wallet shock.
I think Marlborough have always been a bit cheaper than some other places. They do own their airfield which I expect provides some income, plus they are not being raped and pillaged for ground rentals by an airport company that has grossly inflated views on the value of their airport like happens at Hamilton and other similar places.
The legal minimum time for a type rating is 30 minutes, but to get thru the type rating syllabus will usually take much longer than this. As a freshly minted PPL you could expect to do about 2 hours more or less depending on your ability and other circumstances.