If you're intending to fly your trainer with your head in a cardboard box with just a rectangular hole cut in the front then the simulators is quite realistic
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Otherwise you'll find that having peripheral vision and the wind on your back makes orientation and finding the runway much easier. However the rest of what you describe sounds not far off. You should be using throttle to control height and you often need both rudder and ailerons at low level, though that depends on the plane.
Steve