N64 Rainbow Road

Rainbow Road is the fourth and last race of the Special Cup in Mario Kart 64, as well the sixteenth and last course in the game. It is the longest racecourse in Mario Kart 64, at 2,000 meters (2 kilometers), and requires about two minutes per lap, making it the longest three-lap track in the whole series. The track differs from the other Rainbow Roads in that it has rails throughout the entire track. The track features a transparent multicolored glass path with star-shaped rails running throughout the entire course. Neon-light pictures of the eight playable characters and a portrait of a Boo and a Mushroom are found in the distance and float in the void. Moreover, a big three-dimensional smiling star lies in a curved section of the track. Roving Chomps slide through the course in a zigzag pattern, and colliding with them will cause the player's kart to crash and be thrown into the air. The course returns in Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe as the fourth and final course of the Lightning Cup.

Course layout
Mk64rainbowroad.png The course starts with a huge drop followed by a gentle uphill stretch passing through a rainbow ring. After the ring, there is a wide loop with neon signs of Mario, Peach and Luigi on the loop's outside. Following the loop is a steady downward road that crosses over the steep drop where a Mushroom sign can be seen. After the bridge is a corkscrew loop with a large star in the center and a Boo sign at the corkscrew's outside. Racers turn around a corkscrew to reach a hairpin bend, where signs of Donkey Kong and Yoshi are seen, with a Bowser sign in the distance. Shortly after the hairpin bend is a short straightaway followed by a smaller drop and small uphill stretch. A Toad neon sign can be seen after the drop as well as a wide right turn. A straightaway follows with a Wario sign present, then follows a final looping section, where the aforementioned Bowser sign is seen near the end of the track. After the loop is a final straightaway to the finish.

Shortcuts

 * Despite this track having railings, racers can perform a large shortcut by making a timed hop to the left (or right, during Extra) during the drop at the beginning.

Mario Kart 8 / Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
This version of Rainbow Road makes its classic course debut in Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, where it is the fourth and last course of the Lightning Cup. The course is now section-based, and takes place above a brightly-lit city near a coast at night instead of the deep space from the original. The Princess Peach Statue of Liberty from Toad Harbor and the course itself can be seen in the city setting, and in the center of the city below, there is a tower that faintly resembles the Eiffel Tower, with four ? Blocks, a Mushroom, and a spinning Star visible on top of it. Christmas trees can also be seen scattered throughout the city. Also, there is a moon in the sky that can be seen right after the starting line. The road is now formed by multicolored tiles made of glowing LED lights (similar to ) laid out in a diagonal color pattern within a golden frame, as opposed to the slightly transparent glass stripes from the original version. A flying train travelling around the course was also added, ridden by Toads who throw coins onto the track.

The starting banner is now a rotating, star-shaped planetary gear. When players nearly reach the finish line, the outer gears will change shape by expanding their star-shaped appendages wide and closing in upon themselves. A scrolling LED sign reading "RAINBOW ROAD" in the NES font can be seen in the inner part of the gears.

The other major change is that the course has been greatly altered to incorporate the game's gliding and anti-gravity mechanics. At the gentle uphill stretch, an anti-gravity panel was added. The circular loop now lies on the right side of the course instead of on the left side and is inclined at a near-90 degree angle to act as an anti-gravity section. The dip after the large U-turn is now another smaller U-turn. The Chomps are now larger, and instead of sliding through the course in a zigzag pattern, bounce repeatedly, creating ripples on the track that can be used to perform aerial tricks. Along the course, Dash Panels have been added and are surrounded with rings. The final stretch before the finish line is now slightly sloped as an anti-gravity section and ends with a glide ramp.

A map of the city beneath the course, mentioning Toad Harbor,, and , can be seen in Super Bell Subway. Because of this, this Rainbow Road is likely set above those courses. The railway lines that can be seen from this Rainbow Road, according to the map in Super Bell Subway, connect this city to many other places where tracks of Mario Kart 8 can be found.

F-Zero X
F-Zero X features the N64 Rainbow Road as Rainbow Road: Psychedelic Experience. It is the first course of the Joker Cup (the game's equivalent to the Special Cup). Parts, though not all of it, are rainbow-colored. Unlike the original, it has no barriers in certain areas, and the neon Super Mario franchise decor is missing. Instead, it just has a plain black background with a watery blue bottom to which careless drivers may fall. In addition, when racing the track with the 64DD expansion features, the background song is a rock version of the Rainbow Road song heard in Mario Kart 64 (the regular version uses the track used in Sectors α and β). The Chomps are replaced by deadly minefields on certain sections of the track which will cause drivers to crash or destroy their vehicle.

Mario Kart 64

 * Instruction manual bio: This course can be described in a word -- LONG, very long. It is simply the longest of all the courses. As the name indicates, the road is made of rainbow and it has a fantastic view of neon sculptures twinkling in the distance. The final course of the Special Cup, it is definitely worth seeing. It is advisable to slow down to avoid the Chomps that will attack.
 * Website bio: The longest track in Mario Kart 64, Rainbow Road is a surreal trip through a world of giant neon sculptures.

Mario Kart 8 Original Soundtrack liner notes
"This is a hugely popular track, and for the full HD version we worked on the arrangement to bring out its full beauty. You'll be pleased to hear that those lovable Chain Chomps are alive and well in this title."

Neon signs
When a player is playing the course, the neon lights of Mario, the Mushroom, and the Boo are the only ones that are animated. In order as the track follows:

Trivia

 * Excluding courses in or from Mario Kart Tour, this is one of only two non-SNES courses in the series that differ in lap count between its original and remade versions; the other is in Mario Kart DS.
 * The map of its reappearance in Mario Kart 8, shown in the Prima guide, has two Dash Panels on the third section placed on the right side. However, in the game, they are actually placed on the left side.
 * Aside from its reappearance in Mario Kart 8, arrangements for Rainbow Road's music from Mario Kart 64 can be heard in later titles. Part of Rainbow Road's music from Mario Kart 64 was arranged and used in the music for Rainbow Road in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! and Mario Kart 7. Additionally, part of the music can be heard in World 9's world map theme in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. When first driving the rainbow road in Paper Mario: Color Splash, this music can be heard.