Yeah, but once you're there there's very little difference. Travel time to start the colony is (hopefully) only the first 0.001% of the life span of a colony. Also if the trip is so different how does a test run to the moon help us prepare for vastly different transit conditions?

Either way, a pilot program on the moon offers virtually no benefit. It amounts to dipping your toe in when you know the water is cold; you're looking for an excuse to back out.