I never connect d with ALttP the way everyone else seemed to...
It's definitely an essential installment in the series though...

I’ve finished Link to the Past in under a day, in fact I did it in two on the SNES Mini last year. I still think it is a good game. While Link to the Past isn’t a particularly difficult game, 3D Zelda bosses are usually way easier. Breath of the Wild was the first game in the 3D franchise that I found had a higher difficulty. I also found it interesting that they did the main boss battles before entering into the dungeon, and at the end.

It’s still my favourite 2D Zelda game, and it still has my favourite intro of any Zelda game with the rain sequence and the transformation of the Kingdom Of Hyrule through the course of the first few minutes, and continuing for the first hour until you defeat Agahnim.

Do not play link between worlds (for now). On it's own it's a great game but it's a re-imagined remake of link to the past (and it's too easy).

Play Link's awakening (the gameboy color version). It has simply the best story and is my favorite Zelda. It's so good I'd buy a Switch if they finally decide to make a remake of this one.

You and others have also said to play links awakening, which i currently do have on 3ds VC....mmhhh

I agree on ALBW, it was a fun game but it was too easy and I didn't enjoy the rental system so I haven't revisited the game after my first playthrough. Whereas I've replayed LTTP quite a few times.

I think it’s important to keep in mind just how much of the Zelda formula was established in ALttP. Pacing, plot, the master sword, the hookshot and the more structured/linear progression were all relatively new elements in the series. And honestly, that alone would earn my respect, but the way they designed the dark world system sets it apart from most Zeldas even today. I really apreciate the attention given to the placement of the warp points and how the mirror worked. It’s very subtle design, that hints at what to do next with minima handholding.

Phew, if you didn't enjoy ALttP then it's almost impossible to enjoy Links Awakening or Minish Cap. I haven't played ALBW by myself, but a friend of mine (who loves ALttP) said that the rental system in ALBW doesn't make fun and makes the game too easy. But it seems to be a good game after all with a few new ideas.

So I would say – stick with the 3D Zelda's. The SNES version is the king of the 2D Zelda's. It's technical perfection in any point of view.

Oh yes, the experience playing the game on an emulator or with the real console on a CRT makes a big difference, even without nostalgia effect. The sound chip on the SNES is legendary. No emulator comes close. Zelda III still has the best soundtrack in the series in my opinion.

True! And the thing that really blew me away was just how much of of the soundtrack was used in OOT. I played OOT when it launched back in the day and never knew that a lot of those tunes were used in ALTTP. When I was playing it for the first time, I was like "Omg, that's from OOT" over and over again. It really served to strengthen my appreciation for its place in history and its creative imprint. 

The way alot of people in this thread feel about ALTTP is the same way I felt and still feel about the original LoZ... "meh." It never grabbed me when I was a kid the way most NES games did, and I actually prefer Zelda II despite its brutal difficulty. I forced myself to play through the original when I got the Zelda Collector's Edition on GC just so I could say I finally beat it, and man was it a chore to play through.

ALTTP on the other had is still one of my all time fav games, and my favorite of the Zelda series along with TOOT, MM, Minish Cap and now Breath of the Wild. I didn't enjoy ALBW as much as I thought I would being that it was a throwback to ALTTP. It was way too easy and the turning into a painting mechanic was just a lame replacement for traversing between light & dark worlds with the mirror / warp tiles in the original.