Star Trek: 10 Biggest Differences Between Kirk's Enterprise And Picard's

Both the original Enterprise and the Enterprise-D had shuttles onboard that could transport members of the crew on special missions away from the mothership, or land on a planet's surface. They were warp-capable and armed with phasers, but much slower and less powerful than a starship.

The shuttles were stored, launched, and maintained in shuttlebays. Kirk's ship only had one shuttlebay, whereas Picard's had at least three. Interestingly, the Enterprise-D was also equipped with another small vessel known as a Captain's Yacht. Picard's Yacht was known as the Calypso and was never used onscreen, though you can make out the outline of it on the underside of the saucer-section.

Not much is known about the Calypso, other than its name and general shape, but we have seen other Captain's Yachts in Star Trek: Nemesis and Lower Decks, and they are basically just personal luxury vessels for the Captain to use on short solo missions. It makes sense that Picard would barely use his Yacht, as it seems more like a pretentious status-symbol than anything practical.