I am at a similar age as you and maybe I can also give some more or less useful information or even mindsets.
I do not know your financial stats - if you have a lot of cash stacked up in the bank I would do exactly what Airforce1 suggested. If you have cash but not enough to pull through in one go, then different rules apply. I started flying when I was 26 - but it has taken me virtually 6 years to get CP/IR so now I am already 32 and just finishing off.
So I adopted to go the step by step way and was prepared to pull out at any stage if things would turn out to become impossible. So when I had the cash to go PPL (see that you can pull it through as you want to maintain a good learning curve - go flying at least once or twice a week, there will be times where you will not fly because of the weather...) which is the first important step - do this for the fun and joy of flying - it allows YOU to go up whenever cash and weather permits as long as you are medically fit to do so. I did my PPL and most post PPL flying in Germany - one of the reasons it took me so long because flying is quite expensive out there - so coming to Cape Town to carry on here was an advantage and speeded me up again.
Concerning flying schools and clubs, it is hard to make any suggestions 43 Air School (since it was mentioned) is probably qualitywise excellent but I could not afford them and I personally think they are a rip off. Also when communicating, I felt they where also not interested in me as an individual - not so at the flying club in Cape Town where I chose to become a member - I actually also made a couple of friends there and also got my current Job at a local FBO through "hear-say" at the club. Here it is important to find the right instructor, which can become a mission - go to social evenings and talk to the other guys about the pros and cons of instructors and decide on that, get a few opinions - it is important you find someone that will get you to you goal as effectivly and practically as possible. As these guys are usually freelance, some few of them have set finacial goals to make say R1000 a day - if he is short of his days goal, because another student cancelled or whatever, he'll make you fly some extra so he can get his days pay. I would also stay away from guys who are just instructing just to get the hours, might be ok for PPL to get going but as you go for the IR it is different. Go with someone fulltime and does this as his lifes calling. However I found the best guys were usually the ones that don't need money or hours but just do it for the passion of flying and teaching someone new to fly and are instructing part time - the only setback with this is that they are not always as frequently availiable - but I have chosen to go with that, as therefore an SA-Airlink training Capt is now my instructor, who has many small extras through thousands of hours experience to pass on.
After PPL it means hour building for the CPL - have fun, I personally chose to use this as a means to see other parts of the country and experience different airfields and have a holiday at the same time - go to Namibia. Get another conversion - I did not do this stuff in the cheapest plane availiable, but started to get some retractible and variable pitch prop experince from early on. It is really a pity that these types are so hard to find for hire and fly for people on low hours, I had the chance in Germany to fly Mooney straight after PPL (which was great experience. I really miss this... anyone have a Mooney for hire in CT??).
During Hourbuidling also study for those written exams. I went to a course because it helps me to listen to things explained in different words to the books - when pro's do the lecture they very often also tell you useful information which is not in the books but increase your general knowledge of that subject and aviation in general - that really made it worth the money. Some people never get past these exams for some reason - for them that is the end of that road and they will remain VFR PPL pilots, very frustrating for someone dreaming of the big aviation carreer. IFR for PPL still requires 7 of the 8 subjects to be passed at 75% or more.
After hourbuilding be sure to have enough to get you through IR and the Comprep and do both at once if you can - a lot goes hand in hand and compliments each other. After that you might be ready to be trusted with a first time job, if it does not happen straight away, I think it is important not to get rusty.
At this age I am not dreaming of airliners - I will be happy to be a bush driver all my life hopefully one day in a Caravan or if fortunate a PC-12 - if other opportunities arise in future so be it, I'll just let those things approach me. I would not pay for my own twin rating - especially socalled "useless" twin aircraft which in my eyes are a safety hazard - I would rather fly single turbine. I think if I have enough turbine hours I would just get a initial IF twin on a Baron and then go directly King Air as F/O and do it the proper way. The uprise of very light jets for Airtaxi single pilot work is also going to be very interesting. Go with the flow and see opportunities the market presents. Working at an FBO also helps to hear what is going on and who is looking for pilots, also important: it does bring an income to buy some food and pay the rent. If I don't get a job as bush driver straight away, as the job openings there are pretty seasonal, I'll just take the time to get my ATP subjects as well.
Maybe to sum up the whole story: at our age group, do not make yourself solely dependant or desperate on being a pilot until you get the first real paying job - if under pressure or the time is not right I have found things do not happen !(like with women - if your too needy and dependant you'll get none or you'll just get a really bad deal, if you don't care you increase you chances for the good stuff substancially...)
