It's really only "easy" if you are using mod_php. If you are using PHP-FPM, FastCGI, etc, as most people do who run production PHP, then things get about as complicated as using uWSGI, mod_wsgi, etc with Python.
On that note though, getting mod_wsgi up and running with Apache is really quite simple.
You are absolutely right, strictly speaking it is the same thing. Getting a simple 'Hello World!' from the server though is a different thing but it is by no fault of Apache, Python is just not PHP when it comes to web development in the sense that you need this:
def wsgi_app(environ, start_response):
output = 'Hello World!'
status = '200 OK'
headers = [('Content-type', 'text/plain'),
('Content-Length', str(len(output)))]
start_response(status, headers)
yield output
# mod_wsgi need the *application* variable to serve our small app
application = wsgi_app
Adapting your wsgi script for "what? is it in a virtual env? Where? What version of Python is running on this server?" and other similar problems is not so easy.
But yes, it's a matter of an hour or two for a complete newby to complete it. It completely disappears when compared to the time it takes to develop the site, but lots and lots of people consider it the most important aspect of a platform, because it comes first.
On that note though, getting mod_wsgi up and running with Apache is really quite simple.