I didn't like Link to the Past as much as OOT. I would get Orcarina Of Time first.

Some well dodgy advice here.

Do NOT start with Zelda I or II (NES), the first hasn't aged all that well and the second is very hard and not at all like a Zelda game.

Zelda III (A Link To The Past) on the SNES is the best starting point, it's a straight up classic. If you want to go 3D, then Ocarina of Time, whilst far from the 'best game ever' is a fantasic game and well worth a play through.

Also consider dropping a few £££ or $$$ on eBay and picking up the Wind Waker as well, it's up there with the best of them.

I'd leave Majoras Mask until after you have finished Ocarina of Time, as Ocarina is your classic Zelda title, Mask is a darker, slightly strange entry in the series, and best left until you are a fan of the genre.

Twilight Princess. It's really the ultimate Zelda game. While other Zelda's may have more nostalgic or historical significance, Twilight Princess is really the ultimate Zelda experience. It has the best collection of dungeons, a brilliantly written story, oustanding cutscenes, the Wii controls are great and fun, endless sidequests--this would be a great place to start for a Zelda newbie.

But given the three that you're considering, Ocarina of Time. Majora's Mask is an amazing game, but you might not appreciate it if you've never played another Zelda game before. Link to the Past is great as well, but I found it to be overly difficult at times, because it doesn't always give you a clear idea of what to do next.

I'd say play Ocarina first. Majora's Mask is great but Ocarina is the more traditional Zelda. It was my first Zelda game way back when and it's still my favourite.

Twilight Princess makes Ocarina look like a pocket version of Zelda, with it's dinky little Hyrule Field. Back in the day it was massive, it stretched as far as the eye could see... now, it's a postage stamp.

Funny that.

A very empty postage stamp at that. Ocarina is still a great game, but after playing Twilight Princess riding around in Ocarina's Hyrule just isn't that fun any more.

Funny that, there's nothing fun to do in Twilight Princess. There are no sidequests, I don't know where you got that from.
Collecting bugs? The 1 carnival game? The cucoo game? And the river game, and the flying game, and the cave of ordeals. And fishing.
Great, you spend about an hour doing all of those combined (unless you want to repeat the cucoo game to farm rupees, which is a bore).
The other 98% of the time is spent in dungeons, which to me, just felt like a grind. The best parts of the game are the spinner and the double clawshot, which are unfortunately of limited use outside of the dungeons in which they are contained.
TP is by far the worst console Zelda released. It's the only one I haven't played through more than once. It was good, but a bit boring.
/end rant

@OP:
If you are a classic 8-bit gamer (thought I don't see how this is possible if you've never played a Zelda game), play them in order, skipping Zelda II at first. Zelda - Link to the Past - Ocarina - Majora's Mask - Windwaker - Zelda II - Twilight Princess

If you are not in love with the NES, then start at the SNES. Link to the Past - Ocarina - Majora's Mask - Wind Waker - Zelda - Zelda II - Twilight Princess.

Phantom Hourglass. Easiest one

The first game.

Ocarina of Time.... because it's the best game of all time of course!

And here I thought you were one of the good ones, Trin. Tsk, tsk. I hope Mario steps on you good for that.

Link to the past

Hehe.

Put yourself in the OPs shoes, Zelda I or Zelda III?

A Link To The Past looks better, sounds better, plays better, is easy to get into, doesn't involve wandering around, confused because you have no idea where to go, or even where the next dungeon is.

NES Zelda is a classic, but if you are not a fan of the series, it's just an inacessable Zelda III with a graphical downgrade. Lets not pretend any different.

Is NES Zelda a great video game? Yes.

Is NES Zelda a good game for a Zelda novice to start with, and learn to love the series? No.

I think both of those statements are reasonable. I love Super Mario, but if someone was trying to get into the series, you'd recommend Bros III or World, not Bros or Lost Levels, yes? Common sense.

Right, now give the OP his shoes back and go make me a sandwich.

Here's what you do: you can either start with A Link to the Past (probably the greatest Action-RPG ever) or you can go with Ocarina of Time. The choice is yours, considering both are top quality titles.

=O Never played Zelda??

Well, Twilight Princess is tailored for new commers, but I started on Link's Awakening for the GB, so 2D games like A Link to the Past are still fun.

Still, Ocarina of Time is probably your best bet. It is fantabulous.

Any except the First two. They're good games, but hard as hell and really clunky. The rest are all pretty user-friendly, and a lot of fun.

@Trin
Oh, I completely agree, as my previous comment made clear before you had even posted. "Hasn't aged well" just sounded like you thought it was a bad game. Definitely not the best starting place unless you want to play chronologically, of course. Like I said, Link to the Past, then Ocarina, then decide for yourself. That's my suggestion.

I guess you're okay afterall.

Good, good. All sorted then.

It's certainly no bad game, but it has that NES charm, or lack of charm, that would make someone new to the series find it very hard to get on with.

+1.