BEIJING — Tibet reopened to foreign tourists yesterday, three months after the Chinese government banned such visits in the wake of violent anti-government riots and protests that tainted the image of the country ahead of the Olympics.

The first foreign tourists, a retired Swedish couple, arrived at the airport near the capital, Lhasa, yesterday, a Tibetan Tourism Bureau spokesman, Liao Lisheng, said.

“Tibet is open now to all travelers from home and abroad,” he said.

Kurt Persson, 77, and Eva Sandstrom, 62, were welcomed with traditional Tibetan white silk scarves at their hotel near the sacred Jokhang Temple, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

“We’ve been looking forward to visiting Tibet for many years. Its monasteries and landscapes are fascinating,” Xinhua quoted Ms. Sandstrom as saying.

The five-day trip is their first to Tibet, Xinhua said. “We have no worries about the safety here,” Ms. Sandstrom said. “The only worry was to get the permission to come.”

The Himalayan region has been all but closed to the outside world since the biggest protests against Chinese rule in two decades exploded into rioting March 14 in Lhasa, leading Beijing to swiftly shut off the area.

Troops also flooded into predominantly Tibetan communities in nearby provinces, where sympathy demonstrations were occurring. They performed drills in town squares and set up checkpoints around sensitive areas. Officials said the restrictions were established for the safety of foreign tourists and journalists.

[The Daily Telegraph reported yesterday that the International Olympic Committee has lost patience with China, issuing an unusual criticism of the authorities for linking policy on Tibet to the Olympics.

It acted after the ruling Communist Party’s top official in the province used a ceremony to mark the Olympic torch’s passage through Lhasa, the capital, on Saturday to launch a fresh attack on the Dalai Lama.]