Kingmaker is the easiest adventure path I've played save for a few and far between encounters. It's a lot of fun and the players can go at their own pace. It might not be great if your players don't do well with a lot of freedom or aren't up to the task of running a kingdom though there are a lot of really great community made tools that cut down on the bookeeping.
Rise of the runelords, Serpent's Skull, and mummy's Mask are all good straightforward SP's without any side systems, without too much extra work on your part or theirs. Reign of Winter is good for that too, but it goes to some pretty odd places. If you don't mind mixing some Mad Max / Warhammer tech stuff into your games, Iro nGods seems passable, too.
I would avoid Kingmaker. It's a great AP and all, but its side syustems and sandbox nature can make it pretty unweildy for newcomers.
However, I'd suggest doing some "warmup" gaming before leaping face first into an AP. Run something that exercises the system but doesn't take itself too seriously, like say, "We Be Goblins," or the first few levels of emerald Spire or something. Wet the whistle, so to speak. Sime of the introductory adventure one-shots for the pathfinder Society work pretty well, too.
If i had to pick an AP for newcomers, it would be a coin-flip between Rise of the Runelords and Mummy's Mask, however.
We be Goblins is a great module and an pretty good way to introduce newcomers. You can also use it as a springboard into Jade Regent as the events that take place during it spark the Jade Regent adventure path.
Jade regent has some of the same problems that kingmaker does with it's caravan system but it is simpler and there isn't the sandbox element to worry about. It also takes a lot of the work out of writing character backgrounds which can be cumbersome for newcomers.
Side note: Jade Regent is a kinda-sorta sequel to Rise of the Runelords but it can be run spoiler free.
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Go old school and convert the 3.5 Dungeon mag adventure path Savage Tide. It's too fun not to run through and there is thorough posting on this site about the problem areas and how to correct some of the problematic higher-level stuff.
Diseased Savage Monkeys are too awesome not to unleash upon a group that may have never see such....
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I am really enjoying the Iron Gods adventure path as a GM myself. My players are all familiar with DnD 2nd ed-3.5 and they have been playing pathfinder for about a year now. They said its a refreshing game that isn't the average game and has a splash of technology that doesn't completely take away from the Fantasy aspect of the game. It doesn't overpower the game with sci-fi it just seems to be a really cool blend of both.
This is coming from a person who has been playing/gm/dming RPGs for over 22 years and really dislikes all sci-fi genre games. For me to suggest this is definitely against the norm. It is a fun and refreshing spin on the normal fantasy rpg modules.
I'd probably go Rise of the Runelords, given the group you describe. It's really good at building step-by-step from a small town outwards.
Zeitgeist is the best... they have suggestions to the GM if the players do something not intended... its fun and awesome and epic and... lots of rp, combat, different kinds of obstacles... and brain power... its the AP that your players will write pages of discussion between sessions about how they should handle a problem....
I would agree that Rise of the Runelords is probably a better choice. However, I would recommend getting the Anniversary Edition as the individual AP books are out of print and they were written for 3.5 not the Pathfinder system.
Rise of the Runelords Anniversary Edition is probably the best Adventure Path for both new players and new GMS. There's lots of other fun APs like Kingmaker, Wrath of the Righteous, Jade Regent, etc, but they're all best with veteran groups who have at least one campaign under their belt. (Kingmaker especially is a lot better with a very experienced GM who can get the most out of the campaign.)
Yes, it is the complete Adventure Path. It just doesn't have the additional chapters that were in the original books. The chapters that were included in the original books were basically background information and small bestiaries. All needed information to run the AP is included in the Anniversary Edition.
I'll cast another vote for Rise of the Runelords. Presently mastering it, and we're almost at the end. It's been a really fun ride.
-Nearyn
Another vote for Runelords anniversary hardback, especially with a new group. Can't beat the classics.
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If you aren't afraid of working with 3.5 stuff, Curse of the Crimson Throne is widely regarded as the best AP they've done. Beyond that, go with a theme you like. If you wanna do Egyptian it's Mummy's Mask, horror is Carrion Crown, etc.
The harder ones to run are
Legacy of Fire
Kingmaker
Jade Regent
Iron Gods
so maybe avoid those.