Rainbow Road

Rainbow Road is the name of several levels featured in the Mario Kart series of videogames.

Rainbow Road customarily appears as the final brand new track of each Mario Kart game and the final race of the Special Cup. It typically is among the most difficult to complete, since most Rainbow Road tracks often have little to no guardrails to prevent the player from falling off the edges of the track, and oftentimes feature tight curves, steep slopes, and wavy grounds.

SNES Rainbow Road was remade in Mario Kart 7 as a retro track, in Mario Kart 8 as part of the Legend of Zelda x Mario Kart 8 DLC pack, and in Mario Kart Tour.

The Rainbow Road featured in Mario Kart 64, inhabited by Chain Chomps, is the game's last track. Guardrails span the entire road, but it is still possible to fall or knock other racers off of the track, even allowing a significant shortcut near the starting line. The track is of extreme, "tedious" length. A redecorated N64 Rainbow Road was later remade as a retro track in Mario Kart 8, where it is raced in only one lap due to its size.

In Mario Kart Wii, the track is located above Earth's atmosphere, sending racers burning down toward the planet if they fall off. Wii Rainbow Road is heavily inspired by Super Mario Galaxy, as there are Star Bits floating throughout the track and the climax features a Launch Star that launches players upwards similar to the Mario Kart: Double Dash!! version. Wii Rainbow Road was later remade for Mario Kart Tour with mostly visual improvements and for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, as part of the Booster Course Pass expansion pack, featuring its anti-gravity mechanic throughout the track.

3DS Rainbow Road was remade for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. It was also featured as a stage in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

In Mario Kart 8 as well as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the track uses three whole laps again instead of lap sections, and there is again a planet in the background with a higher resolution than the one from Mario Kart Wii. This track is the first one to exploit the idea of gliding upon solar panels on a space station, giving a plausible explanation to the track's premise of a rainbow-colored track suspended in outer space. The ground uses quadratic tiles in resemblance to the original Rainbow Road (Super Mario Kart). At the start/finish line, the track crosses through a space craft filled with Toads who sit on tribunes as on a normal racetrack. Several more space ships carry parts of the track, most notably the one with two circular conveyor belt rotating rings in opposing directions which can speed up or slow down the vehicle that drives upon. As with other Mario Kart 8 tracks, Rainbow Road's surface is wildly twisted, forcing racers to make use of the new anti-gravity feature. At a location, two separated parts of the track cross nearby in different angles, and distant parts of the track can be seen ahead from far away. According to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe producer Kosuke Yabuki, the development team's goal was to create a version of Rainbow Road with a "near-future" aesthetic when anti-gravity controls were added.

Mario Kart Tour features two courses based on the original Rainbow Road from Super Mario Kart. Labeled as "remix courses" (abbreviated to "RMX courses") these courses use a different layout compared to the original, and feature new mechanics, such as gliding and bouncy mushroom platforms. These courses are named RMX Rainbow Road 1 and 2, and share their music with the course they are based on.