Altcoin is not an option for a newbie, it is less risky to start holding Bitcoin before gaining knowledge but one can not take such risk on altcoins, and in the best interest of your investment bitcoin should be taken as a long-term investment.
Don't hold Bitcoin for the short term unless your are using Bitcoin to carry out daily transactions, such as paying bills, but if you are looking to make your savings in bitcoin, you must be determined to hold for at least 5-6 months and one year respectively.
Bitcoin is a top project in the market and it have high volatility which results to the massive dump and pump if the market. I'm holding bitcoin with my ultimate goal to allow it to make a bull run up to $100k. Patience is highly practiced when dealing with bitcoin, it's either you make profits or loss, each action will be triggered. Bitcoin can take up to a year before it pumps, there's more chances to pump when the bull season comes, but presently the bear market is everywhere.